Fifa says 'nobody selling football' as it presses ahead with investment plan
Fifa, which oversees world football, has responded to outrage over a plan to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors by saying it plans
Fifa, which oversees world football, has responded to outrage over a plan to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors by saying it plans to continue the consultation process. European football's 55 member associations (MAs) voted on Thursday to boycott World Cups if Fifa proceeded with the proposal. And Concacaf, which governs football in North and Central America, said its 41 member associations also "rejected" the plan. Fifa said in response: "Our planned consultation process was disrupted by incorrect media reports.
We will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each MA has the ability to express its vote based on facts. "Nobody is selling football," it insisted. Fifa wants to create a commercial subsidiary to run its main events, including its World Cups, and external investors will be able to buy stakes in it. It said it would "invite third parties to make minority, non-controlling investments" in a new subsidiary - Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE).
The plan needs to be passed by a vote of Fifa's 211 members. Infantino needs 106 votes in favour for the proposal to go through. Uefa and Concacaf members combined make up 96 associations, who appear set to vote against. In its statement released on Friday morning, Fifa said: "We respect the feedback and concern aired in public and reaffirm our
commitment to an open and democratic consultation." The statement continued: "FFE has been proposed solely to ensure that all FIFA Member Associations (MAs) have the opportunity to take meaningful ownership of the commercial opportunity of football in their respective countries, and that this does not come at the cost of either the spirit or the governance of FIFA or football itself."
The BriefWire